Artificial pearl.



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

PAUL B. SCHBEUBS AND GEORGE F. ME'IZ, OF IIUSGATINE, IOWA, ASSIGNORS TO THE PBESSLOID COMPANY, OF MUSCA'I'INE, IOWA, A COBPORATION OF IOWA.

ARTIFICIAL PEARL.

Io Drawing.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, PAUL B. Scams and GEORGE F. Ms'rz, citizens of the United States, residing at Muscatine', in the county of Muscatine and State of Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Artificial Pearl; and we hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

The object of this invention is to produce a novel material which may be used for many purposes in the manufacturin arts, and aS a substitute for bone, shell, cel uloid, artificial ivory and hard rubber, and other natural and. artificial substancesused in manufactures, and which material ma be molded. or pressed into shape while in a plastic condition, or when thoroughly seasoned or hardened may be cut or machined into the desired shape.

A special object of the invention is to utilize the .waste products of so called pearl button factories where the buttons are cut from earl mussel shells, such as are commonly ound in the Mississippi river and its tributaries, and from pearl shells found in the sea.

In making buttons from these shells, ar-.

present time is practically commerciallyworthless.

Our present invention utilizes such pearl shell waste and dust and by treating the same as hereinafter ex lained we produce therefrom a. very valuab'li: product which can be used for many purposes in the arts, and as a substitute for other materialsabove mentioned, and we convert thehithe'rto ab: solutel 'waste pearl dust'or powder ilxto a.

valuab e. commercial product.

Specification o! Ietters Patent.

Patented Jan. 8, 1918.

In carrying out our invention we use the pearl shell dust and also utilize the pearl shell waste by reducing the latter to a fine powder and mix such powder with milk and calcium chlorid. This mixture is then thoroughly stirred until the mass is practically homogeneous; and it may be heated to evaporate excess moisture, and finally compressed by suitable means, and then allowed to season from say ten to'twenty days time, the time required depending upon the thickness of the mass or sheets into which the plastic mass is formed and the atmospheric conditions or temperature. When thoroughly seasoned the product will be hard, tough and durable.

If it be desired to tint the product a suitable pigment' or coloring agent may be added to the mass at the time the components are being mixed, so that the product I when finished will have the desired color.

If desired the mixture before being seasoned can be pressed into anyzdesired form or articles and then allowed to harden,

We have found an excellent product can be produced by mixing one hundred pounds of pearl-shell powder, twenty pounds of milk, and two pounds of calcium chlorid,

or its equivalent. Preferably the calcium chlorid is dissolved in the milkbefore the latter is mixed with the powder.

The said resultant product when seasoned, is extremely hard and durable, and can be used for many purposesin the arts, in lieu of celluloid, real or. artificial ivory, bone,

hard rubber, and othercompositions, and in many cases even in place of metal with adv'antageous results.

The product is not afiected'by heat and can be machined and polished. It can be used. for insulating material, and as a substitute for porcelain articles; and has great durability and strength and is not fragile nor liable to fracture. 1

The proportions mentioned most excellent product, but we 0 not'consider the invention restricted to such particular roportions; they can be varied within e scope of the invention.

reduce a I What we claim is: v 1. A roduct comprising powdered pearl shell, mllk, and calcium chlorid.

2. The herein described artificial roduct, 5 comprising pearl shell powder, m1lk, and

calcium chlorid, compressed and dried, substantially as described.

3. The herein described composition conof calcium chlori sistingof approximately 100 arts of pearl shell powder, 20 arts of mill r and 2 arts 10 (l: substantially as speclfied. In testimony that we claim the foregoing as our own we affix our signatures.

PAUL R. SGHREURS. GEGRGE F. METZ. 

